PERIVALE—The opening of the Perivale Gallery has become an annual rite for art lovers from Manitoulin and across the province—and these days, with the advent of the Internet, across the globe.
“We open this year with the Ivan Wheale reveal,” said Perivale Gallery owner Shannon McMullan, who admitted she herself was very excited to see this year’s works. “I understand that there are some really different works in this year’s reveal. Ivan has been working on a lot more than the Georgian Bay landscapes that he is so very well known for. There are works with an agricultural theme and some works that he has purposely painted for the Spirit of Tom Thomson exhibit.”
The ‘In the Spirit of Tom Thomson and the Group of Seven’ exhibition will be opening at Perivale Gallery on July 21 and running until August 5, from 10 to 5 pm daily. That opening will be a “double whammy” this year, noted Ms. McMullan. “There is also the Manitoulin Art Tour that weekend.”
Ms. McMullan sits on the provincial marketing committee for the Group of Seven in Ontario.
Those unable to make it to the season opening at the Perivale Gallery can still view the works on offer by logging in online. “We have a huge online following,” said Ms. McMullan, who unleashes the online catalogue at 7 am on the morning of the gallery opening.
“It is really a courtesy for the people in Sudbury,” she said. “They are a two-and-a-half-hour drive to come to the Island and like to check out the pieces they want to see in person before they come down.” Customers as far away as Ireland were purchasing some of Mr. Wheale’s works after viewing them online.
Perivale Gallery will be offering its highly popular art workshop series again this year, but if there is one you want to take, don’t delay, the seats are already going fast—a number are already one-third to one-half filled. “The workshops are capped at 12 participants,” cautioned Ms. McMullan. She sees the workshops as being as much a tourism draw as an artistic opportunity.
“We have a great working relationship with the Spring Bay Hall,” she said. “We have rented it out for 11 weekends over the summer. I keep a list of local accommodations for folks coming from off-Island. That includes bed and breakfasts as well as other accommodations around Mindemoya, Spring Bay and Providence Bay.”
“Our Summer Art Workshops are perfect for all skill levels,” said Ms. McMullan. “This year we are excited to have workshops by Barry Bowerman, Ruth Reid, Ivan Wheale, Cathy Boyd, Andrew Hamilton, Brigitte Bere, Mark Hope, Lisa Free and Linda Finn. They are filling up fast.”
The gallery can be contacted at perivalegallery@gmail.com.
